Tag Archives: War and conflict

In April of 1994, after decades of tension between the Tutsi and Hutu ethnic groups, the assassination of Rwanda’s Hutu president sparked the massacre of an estimated 800,000 people in a Hutu attempt to wipe out the minority Tutsi population. The genocide began in Rwanda’s capital of Kigali and quickly spread within the country, forcing millions to flee as refugees to neighboring countries.

The genocide ended 100 days later in July when the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RFP) took over Kigali. They remain the political party in power today.

Three World Vision staff members who spent time in Rwanda during and just after the genocide give their testimonies—stories of unbelief at the inhumanity, but also of how the 20-year transition to peace and forgiveness is “beyond human comprehension.”

Syrian refugee Ghaziyye with her one of her 4-year-old twin daughters in Lebanon. (Photo: 2013 Lauren Fisher/World Vision)

13-year-old Oujelan. Ghaziyye and her twin girls. 4-year-old Saad, who's forgotten how to play—these are some of the faces that have stayed with today's writer, Lauren Fisher, who visited Lebanon a year ago.

Today, Lauren reflects on the people she met and celebrates the ways that World Vision's work with the Syrian refugees has helped them and many more, and continues.

As conflict ravages South Sudan, the nation’s children are bearing the brunt of the crisis: separated from their families, hungry and malnourished, not in school, and at risk of abuse and exploitation.

Michael Arunga, World Vision emergency communications advisor for Africa, looks back at the brief history of South Sudan and reflects on how this new nation came to its current situation.

Medina and Margret are just two among hundreds of thousands in South Sudan who have been driven from their homes by the fighting that escalated last month. Left with little in a disrupted economy, they want to take their families away from the conflict but can’t afford to, leaving them to seek sanctuary wherever they can. Read the story of these two families, and learn what World Vision is doing to help.

Today, Meg tells the story of Yeman and Shamaa. As Syrian refugees living in Jordan, these best friends and next-door neighbors are getting a second chance at an education through World Vision's remedial program.

With its murder rate and levels of violence, Central America is among the most dangerous regions in the world outside of active war zones. Battles are waged between heavily armed gangs -- and, much like war zones, it is often the innocent who are most affected.

Joy Toose, social media manager for World Vision Australia, spent a month reporting from Lebanon about the Syrian refugees who fled there to escape violence in their home country. Today, she shares three things that she learned about the refugee crisis that you should know, too.

Today's post -- the fourth in our weekly series about the Syrian conflict and refugee crisis -- is the story of an 8-year-old Syrian girl, Jouri, who loves learning but can't go to school in Lebanon. But now, having been enrolled in a World Vision education program,Jouri has hope.

If you missed them, check out the first, second, and third posts from this series.

In today's post by World Vision's Michael Bailey: A father struggles to find work and enough food to feed his family. A mother longs to hear from her 20-year-old son living in the war zone. Children sit and wait, idly passing hours and days, dreaming of going home to be with friends.

An 8-year-old Syrian refugee child named Layla* shares, “I saw my cousin dying in front of me, so I always see this scene in front of my eyes.”

As children all over North America happily rummage through the cheerful remains of Christmas Day’s joys -- festive gift wrap strewn about, the latest version of Halo blaring from 40-inch television screens -- the existence of Syrian children presently seeking refuge in Lebanon is one far less carefree.

In this season of joy, it’s difficult to fathom that at least 66,000 children like Layla are coping with the loss of home and childhood as their families struggle to survive the displacement of war and onset of a cold, snowy winter in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley.

World Vision's Kari Costanza traveled to Rwanda, where she met Solange, whose life was turned upside-down in a short period of time.

Fighting caused Solange and her family flee their home in the Democratic Republic of Congo. After arriving in Kiegeme refugee camp, Solange lost her 3-year-old daughter, Rebecca.

Kari met Solange in a hospital, where she was staying with her baby, Esther. Kari shares her thoughts on meeting Solange and Esther -- and the tragic news she received after returning to the United States.